Fitting the Pattern
by Maz Kazama
Summary: When Dean starts experiencing psychic abilities as well as Sam the elder Winchester is over the moon. Sam, on the other hand, believes these new abilities could be bad news for both of them and, unfortunately, he might be right. Not a deathfic.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Oooh,my first Supernatural fic - I'm nervous!  
This is set after 'Hunted' but before 'Playthings' and there are minor spoilers for 'Faith' in this chapter.  
Erm, what else is worth mentioning? NOT Wincest. Rating may go up later.  
Warnings: Minor Dean-whumping**

"Not so special now eh, Sammy-boy?"

Sam Winchester rolled his eyes as his older brother clapped him on the shoulder. Dean had been repeating the same sentiment over and over for the past half an hour or so now and Sam was getting, to put it bluntly, pissed.

"Okay, Dean." He snapped, shrugging off the older Winchester's hand. "I get it, ok? But this isn't something to be gloating about." Sam trailed off as his burst of anger dissipated. "You shouldn't _be _a psychic." He continued thoughtfully. "It doesn't fit the pattern…"

"Screw the pattern!" Was Dean's automatic defensive response and Sam sighed, trying to keep his anger in check. He knew Dean had to be feeling pretty confused right now and it was only just under an hour ago since they'd defeated that Wendigo meaning that they were _both _still high off the trail end of an adrenaline rush. But still, Dean's immature attitude wasn't helping Sam figure this out one bit.

"Dammit, Dean, this isn't a game!" So much for keeping his anger in check, Sam thought as he yelled at his brother. "As usual, you're missing the bigger picture, this-"

"Oh no, I can see the bigger picture, Sam." Dean's cold, emotionless tone was a sharp contrast to Sam's frustrated shouting. "You're jealous."

The words were barely even out of Dean's mouth before Sam was yelling "What?!"

"Yeah…" Dean replied, still calm but this time with a hint of confidence (or was it arrogance?) too, "You ain't 'Special Sammy' any more, are you?" He mocked, adding air quotes as he spoke his recently created moniker. Sam wanted to protest that he'd never been called that but he held his tongue, curious to see where his brother had got this screwed up notion that he was jealous from.

"Not to mention…death visions?" Dean sneered in contempt and Sam scowled angrily before gasping as the hotel ash tray levitated off the table and floated towards him, eventually hovering in front of his face before plummeting to the ground and smashing loudly getting Sam's adrenaline flowing all over again.

"This is telekinesis, dude!" Dean exclaimed, viewing his handiwork with a look of pride even as Sam yelled over the top of his boasting.

"Dammit, Dean, cut it out!"

The younger Winchester closed his eyes trying to will his heart to stop hammering and to get his breathing under control. When he re-opened them he was shocked, not to mention relieved, to see, not a look of scorn on his older brother's face, but one of worry instead.

* * *

"Are you ok?" Dean swallowed past a lump in his throat before he spoke. His voice was tentative and a little shaky; the look in his little brother's eyes scared him. It wasn't a look of anger or rage like you might expect but something that Dean found so much worse – fear. His baby brother was _scared _of him. 

"_What the Hell am I doing?" _The older Winchester thought to himself. The look in Sam's eyes was one Dean himself had shown many times during his childhood and it was a look he'd always tried to make sure Sam never had to experience. Now he himself was causing it and that realisation made him feel sick.

"I-I'm sorry, man…" He mumbled, bending down to sweep the shards of glass from the carpet, worried by Sam's lack of reply. "I didn't mean to-"

"Hey…" Dean jumped at the feel of a hand on his own, looking up from the floor to see Sam crouched beside him. "It's alright." The younger man said gently, placing his hands over Dean's in an unspoken acceptation of his apology. "I wasn't exactly calm when I found out about my ability either." He laughed before smirking and cuffing Dean playfully on the back of the head,

"...Jerk."

Dean didn't think he'd ever been more relieved to hear the childish insult in his life and he grinned happily as he shot back, in true Winchester tradition;

"Bitch."

And, as far as Dean Winchester was concerned, that meant everything was well between him and his brother. He was therefore surprised, when he stood up, to see Sam looking at him with a shocked, panicked expression.

"Wh-what?" He asked confusedly, laughing somewhat nervously at his brother's horrified expression, "What were you expecting me to say?"

"Dean…you-you're bleeding…" Sam finally stammered out and Dean frowned, checking himself for injuries, he was pretty sure that Wendigo hadn't managed to scratch him anywhere and, even if it had, he was sure he would have noticed by that time.

It was only when a splash of crimson landed on his shirt he realised what Sam was talking about and he was surprised and worried to find his nose trickling blood. He choked a little as he tipped his head back and copper tasting blood ran down his throat but what really concerned him was that his brother was leaving him. Sam wasn't just walking away he was jogging, Dean was sure he would have been sprinting if there had been space in the cramped room, and that worried Dean more than any nosebleed ever could.

When Sam returned from the motel bathroom he had rushed to, he found Dean stood with his head tipped back, pinching his nose. Sam knew from experience that Dean had had nosebleeds more than a few times in his life, though they were usually caused by said nose being broken, and the older Winchester was more than familiar with the routine to treat them.

"Here." He said, handing Dean the damp washcloth that he had retrieved from the bathroom. He was alarmed, as Dean took the washcloth from him, too see the amount of blood on his brother's hands and he felt helpless as Dean replied, still squeezing his nose;

"'Danks'"

* * *

Realistically, Sam knew Dean's nosebleed couldn't have lasted more than five minutes or so but it had felt an awfully long time as he had stood watching the blood trickled from between Dean's fingers and the motel washcloth had turned from off-white to pink as it absorbed the flow of blood. He'd been with Dean through far more serious injuries of course - those minutes spent holding Dean's unconscious body in that damp, dark cellar, listening to Dean's thready, erratic pulse whilst waiting for the ambulance had been far, far worse. Still, he hated to see his brother suffering and he was relieved when the bleeding finally slowed, then stopped and Dean sat down on the edge of the bed looking pale, but otherwise well. 

"What's up, Sammy? You look like I just lost a limb or something." Dean joked as Sam sat down beside him.

"You aren't worried?" Sam asked, sounding both worried and confused and Dean frowned.

"Worried? Sam, it's just a nosebleed." He tried to soothe his younger brother. "People get them all the time, don't be paranoid."

"But…it arrived straight after you used your abilities; don't you think that's a little bit strange?" Sam questioned, "What if…what if this power is too much for you?"

"Dammit Sam, I'm fine." Dean replied and Sam was worried he was going to start with his 'Jealous Sammy' theory again. "You don't see me pitching a fit every time you get a-a…vision-migraine do you?"

"Yea, right…I'm sorry." Sam replied flatly, inwardly laughing at Dean's makeshift terminology, and he saw Dean staring at him suspiciously.

"What are you planning?" The elder Winchester asked cautiously and Sam tried to shrug the comment off,

"Now who's being paranoid?"

"You _never _just back down in an argument." Dean observed, "You're plotting something."

"Plotting?" Sam shook his head wearily, "You sound like you're in a cheesy movie."

"You're too baby-faced to be a movie villain, Sammy." Dean smirked as he lay down on the bed. Sam noted he still looked pale and he was both worried and relieved that Dean seemed to have forgotten his train of thought.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The younger Winchester asked with mock-annoyance and Dean shrugged as he drew the covers over himself.

"You can't be a cheesy baddy, you don't have a beard."

"What?!" Sam laughed out loud at Dean's sleepy reply as he himself moved to his own bed.

"All the best villains have a beard, or a moustache at least." Dean 'explained' and Sam closed his eyes briefly as an unpleasant thought flashed through his mind,

"_Or yellow eyes." _

And, as he turned to look at his half-asleep brother, he wondered if perhaps he wasn't the only Winchester the yellow eyed Demon had 'big plans' for.

* * *

**AN: So I hope that wasn't _too _bad, I'm new to writing Supernatural and I haven't watched the eps in a while (roll on season 3!) but I hope Sam and Dean weren't too OOC. The Wendigo has nothing to do with the episode 'Wendigo' I just couldn't think of another monster (sorry :( ).  
Erm, if anyone is actually bothered about reading more I apologise if updates are slow but I'm working two jobs and preparing for university so time is scarce. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Thanks for the reviews everyone. A couple of things I forgot to mention in the first chapter:  
****Characters - not mine. Boo hoo :(  
Secondly this is un-beta-ed becasue I have no friends in the Supernatural fandom yet, so sorry about that**

**

* * *

**

Insomnia wasn't a rare occurrence in Sam Winchester's life. He'd had trouble sleeping ever since he was young and his father had sat him down and told him about all the monsters lurking in the dark that, one day, he would have to learn to fight. Then there were the countless nights he spent worrying about whether his father and brother were going to come home alive in the morning and, of course, the nights afterwards spent patching them both back up. The student lifestyle wasn't one which leant itself to early nights either and once Sam had started getting the visions he'd pretty much given up on ever getting a good night's sleep.

Tonight however it wasn't the threat of seeing the future that kept him awake rather it was the fear of the present and, perhaps, memories of the past. He remembered being pinned down and feeling certain, not for the first time mind you, that he was going to die…so far so normal in the life of Sam Winchester. He pretty much pinpointed the place where things went freaky (and Sam didn't use the word lightly) as when the wendigo had started **floating **off him. He'd done a lot of research since his first encounter with a Wendigo and, if there was one thing he was sure about where they were concerned, it was that they didn't float.

He'd been jolted out of his thoughts by Dean shouting 'Get the Hell out of there!' or words to that effect and he'd decided that, for once, Dean was giving good advice and had rolled out from under the still-levitating monster.

"Why is it…what's happening?!" He'd yelled in confusion over the wendigo's inhuman howls and then he'd noticed how Dean was standing – completely still, staring at the wendgio suspended in mid-air, with one hand held outwards.

"Dean what-"

His words had been cut off as Dean flicked his wrist and the wendigo had hurtled through the air, slamming into a wall at a pace that no living creature could stand. Sam was sure he'd heard the wendigo's bones crunch. Not sure whether he should have been worried or celebrating Sam had settled for a mixture of the two hugging his brother triumphantly but at the same time bombarding him with questions.

"What the Hell happened? What did you do? _How _did you do that? When…"

And Dean's answer to each and every one of them had been a bewildered and exhausted 'I don't know.'

And now, hours after they event, they still weren't any the wiser. Not for the first time Sam resented the fact that hunting was such a lonely lifestyle. Sure he liked being on the road with his brother, even if the guy could be a huge jerk at times, but sometimes he'd just love someone to help out. Someone who'd have the answers. Someone...like Dad.

Sam had scanned his father's journals for info of course but there was very little in there about the chosen children to start with, let alone about 'misfits' like Dean. Sam hated to think of his brother like that but there was no denying it – Dean was an anomalous result in Sam's recently invented, barely-tested hypothesis. If Dean could be one of the special children without any of the usual signs then who knew how many more people there could be out there with supernatural abilities?

Sam sighed and turned irritably in his bed. None of this speculation was helping matters and besides, Sam thought as he stared at Dean's body, relaxed in an exhausted sleep, if Dean wasn't worried about it, then why should Sam himself be?

* * *

Sam was relieved, when Dean dragged himself out of bed, that he no longer looked like he was about to faint. It was one thing that he looked half dead, Dean _always _looked half dead if he had to get out of bed before 10am and he hadn't had any coffee. Luckily, Sam had thought ahead and brewed a pot and he handed a mug full to Dean who took it with a grunt of thanks, obviously not awake enough for conversation, and retreated into the bathroom. Sam was relieved, when Dean returned, to see that the elder Winchester had washed the dried blood off his hands.

"What's with that face, Sammy?" Dean laughed, "You never seem a guy coming out of the bathroom before?" He smirked and Sam rolled his eyes – the coffee had done its job, Dean was back to normal alright.

"I'm just glad you're okay, that's all." Sam explained, laughing when Dean pulled a face.

"Enough with the sappy stuff." The elder Winchester groaned, "I was fine last night and, big shock, I'm still fine now." He said with undercurrents of sarcasm and Sam shook his head wearily.

On the outside the young Winchester was calm as he shrugged and said "Whatever" but on the inside he was still worried as he though _"It didn't seem like that when you were nearly passing out with exhaustion on your bed last night." _

"So where we headed to now? Any leads?" Dean asked, bringing his younger brother out of his thoughts and Sam shrugged, unsure of how Dean was going to react to his suggestion.

"I err, I thought we could head to the roadhouse? Maybe see if they can help us figure something out?" Dean was either about to explode or think it was a good idea, Sam was sure of it and he cringed slightly in expectation of the former. Instead he was greeted with neither scenario as Dean frowned,

"Figure what out?" He asked sounding completely clueless.

"Errr…" Sam couldn't believe he was hearing this, why did Dean have to make this into a joke, it was serious! "How about the fact that all of a sudden you can **float** monsters into mid-air?!" He shouted in exasperation and Dean replied with irritating coolness and disinterest

"Oh yeah. That."

"Look, Dean." Sam began, trying to keep calm, "I know it doesn't bother you, or you're willing to pretend it doesn't bother you, but **I'm **worried Dean! The demon said he had-"

"Oh let me guess…" Dean interrupted impatiently, his voice dripping with false sincerity, "'Big plans' by any chance? Nice of you to fill me in on that, Sam, it's not like I don't hear it every single day from you." He snarked and Sam scowled in frustration.

"You know what? Fine!" He yelled, annoyed with himself that Dean had managed to wind him up yet again despite his attempts to keep a cool head. "All I'm trying to do is help you, Dean. If you don't want it then fine, go where you want." He scowled, turning away from his frustrating older brother. Sam was fully aware he was sulking and he frankly didn't care, it wasn't like he was the _only _one being immature.

* * *

Dean had a hundred things he knew he ought to say at that moment as he stared at Sam's back, most of them began with 's' and ended with 'orry' but it wasn't pride that made Dean hold back his apology, it was something he feared much more.

"I don't want there to be anything wrong…"

It was only when Sam whipped around to face him asking "What did you say?" that Dean realised he'd spoken out loud. Then, since he'd started, he figured he might as well continue, Sam was obviously going to drag the truth out of him eventually.

"I just…I dunno what's happening to me." Dean admitted, hating to show his weakness like this but knowing he had to try and explain his behaviour before it drove him and his brother apart.

"When you make a big deal about it I can't pretend that it's not important and…" Dean looked at the floor as he choked out his final words on the subject "And I'm scared, Sammy. I'm really scared."

* * *

**AN: Ok, not great I know. Next chapter will hopefully have some moe action and things.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. This chapter's short (sorry) and un-betad but I hope it's passable**

* * *

It felt good to be behind the wheel, Dean mused as he drove the Impala along the almost deserted road. Driving was something he understood, he was good at it and it gave him complete control, something that seemed to happening less and less in his life these days.

"No music tod-" Dean smirked as his younger brother began talking and then stopped abruptly as he noticed Dean's new method of driving.

"Dean what the Hell?!"

Dean grinned as Sam leaned over to grab the steering wheel which, currently, Dean's hands were nowhere near. His smile faltered as Sam gripped the wheel frantically and the car swerved a little on the road.

"Careful, Sammy." He chastised, pushing his brother away with a little psychic shove.

"**You're **telling **me **to be careful?!" Sam spluttered and Dean chuckled at his brother's indignation before adding playfully,

"Look, Sam, no hands!" and promptly waving said hands in his younger brother's face, all the while keeping his telekinetic grip on the wheel.

"Dean…put your hands on the steering wheel." Sam said, as he slapped Dean's hands away, using a tone that was either badly disguised panic or barely contained anger. Either way Dean obeyed, not wanting to put up with Sam whinging throughout the journey and, although he didn't want to admit it, not confident enough in his new abilities to put his precious car at risk.

"Aw come on, Sammy, don't sulk." Dean grumbled when Sam didn't speak, "I'll even let you pick the music." He said with a smile which faded when Sam turned to look at him like he was an idiot.

"What, Metallica, Iron Maiden or Black Sabbath? What a choice. Is that supposed to make me feel better?" The younger Winchester said sarcastically and Dean glared in response,

"What's the matter? Did you leave your S-Club 7 cassettes back at the motel?" He mocked and Sam rolled his eyes.

"No, because I happen to live in the 21st century where we use compact discs." The younger Winchester countered "And besides, Dean, don't you remember what happened last time you used your powers so recklessly?" He continued in a more serious tone.

Dean sighed as he wished, for what felt like the millionth time, that Sam would just lighten up and have a little fun sometimes. He would have told Sam as much but the annoying thing was that, as usual, the younger Winchester was right. But he wasn't going to admit _that _out loud. No way. Instead he just rolled his eyes and replied immaturely

"Yeah…well…you still sound like you're in a cheesy movie."

* * *

Sam had lost track of what Dean was grumbling about but he was impressed at how long his older brother had managed to keep it up. A quick glance at the dashboard clock informed him that it had been an hour now since Dean had been relegated to the passenger seat and the elder Winchester had been moaning pretty much constantly the whole time.

"I mean…it was a trickle, barely even that, and you're acting like I'm bleeding to death."

Sam tuned back into Dean's complaining and immediately wished he hadn't.

"Look, Dean, you got a nosebleed last time you used telekinesis and you got a nosebleed this time too. I don't think you should be driving when you're still suffering from the after-effects. Besides…" He began with a smug smile, "It serves you right for acting like a _jerk_ earlier." He said, tapping pointedly on the steering wheel.

"Doesn't give you the right to act like a _bitch _now." Dean muttered but Sam could see a reluctant smile on his brother's lips. Why was it some days they could only get along when they were insulting each other?

"My shirt is stained…" Dean mumbled after a short break of silence and Sam was bewildered by how miserable he sounded. Give the guy psychic powers and he isn't phased at all but a bit of blood on his shirt and he's practically in mourning? The younger Winchester shook his head in disbelief, sometimes he felt like he'd _never _figure Dean out.

Still, he didn't like to see his brother upset, no matter how bizarre the reason. "Ellen can put it through the washer at the roadhouse." He said, feeling surreal for using such a comforting tone over something so mundane.

"Any excuse to get shirtless in front of Jo." Dean said with a wink and Sam rolled his eyes, too pleased to see his brother smiling again to protest.

* * *

As it turned out Jo wasn't there for Dean to strip off in front of and, in any case, Ellen firmly announced that, if there was going to be a male stripper in her bar, she would damn well decide who it was.

Dean had scarpered to obey her instruction to get changed somewhere private, clearly disturbed by the middle-aged woman's rant. Sam had simply chuckled, sharing a conspiratorial wink with Ellen once Dean had left the room. He could always rely on Ellen to keep Dean grounded if the older Winchester was starting to get too big for his boots.

Now Sam sat relaxing with a beer and enjoying have some company other than his more-annoying-than-usual older brother. His happy bubble was soon burst however when Ellen leaned over the bar with a serious expression on her face.

"Is that brother of yours alright, Sam? He's looking pale."

Ellen might not have been their mother but she certainly had a mother's intuition, Sam acknowledged. But he was thankful for the validation that he wasn't being as paranoid as Dean had been making out and glad to have someone who would actually listen to him.

"Actually, that's what we came here about." He began and Ellen made her way to the front of the bar, seating herself on a stool beside the younger Winchester.

"Don't tell me he's sick." She said worriedly, "I keep saying it, all that running around getting hurt, not eating properly…it's not _good _for you boys." She said emphatically and Sam shook his head to try and calm her.

"He's not sick…well, not exactly." He struggled to explain, knowing that Dean would be returning at any minute. "We just…recently we…it turns out that-"

"Hey guess what?" Dean's gleeful voice cut Sam off as the older Winchester strolled back into the bar area, freshly changed, "I can undo buttons without using my fingers!" He grinned looking ridiculously proud.

Sam looked back at Ellen who looked incredibly bewildered and more than a little surprised, and took that as his cue to finish his explanation.

"It turns that Dean's a psychic too." He explained grimly before exchanging confused frowns with his brother when Ellen's confused expression turned into one of horror and she shook her head worriedly.

"Oh no…don't tell me it's happened to you too…"

**AN: Sorry guys, I'll try and make the next one better!**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: It's been a while sorry. I'm moving to university in 3 weeks so there's lots to be done.  
What have we got here? Spoilers for Faith (again) and In my Time of Dying.  
Ellen is most likely pathetically OOC but I tried... Oh yeah, un-betad again. **

* * *

"Ellen what's wrong?" Sam asked, reacting to Ellen's foreboding tone. He had the sense that Ellen wasn't just referring to the Winchester family when she spoke.

"You boys need to come over here." Ellen said moving away from the bar and towards a large table. Spread across it was a large map with what looked like nearly a hundred drawing pins stuck in it. The majority were clustered around the South of the United States of America spreading out in a circle from that point.

"What is this?" Sam asked, too absorbed in his studying of the map to notice the arrival of Ash.

Dean however, who had been pulling himself a pint, greeted the arrival of the man with an enthusiastic "Hey, Doctor Badass! Check this out!" and proceeded to float the pint of beer over to where the hacker stood.

"Sweet!" Ash said with a grin, taking the glass out of mid-air and sipping at it.

"It's not 'sweet', Ash." Ellen chastised, "You of all people should know that."

"Yeah, I know...I'm sorry" Ash said with a shrug, his tone suddenly serious. "Tough break man" he said solemnly to Dean as the elder Winchester walked over to the table.

"'Tough break'?" Dean mirrored Ash's words with a frown of confusion. "Did you not just _see _what happened? This is the best thing that's ever happened to me." He stated confidently.

"Not my shirts, mind you…" He added after a pause before whipping round to face his younger brother, "Do you think I could take out shirt insurance?" he asked, deadly serious and Sam rolled his eyes, glad when Ellen banged her fist on the table.

"Boys, please!" she exclaimed. "This is serious, you could be in real danger, along with the rest of the world. You need to focus!"

"You know what's happening to Dean? You know what's causing it?" Sam asked hopefully, relieved when Ellen and Ash nodded in unison.

"Dean, that's great." Sam clapped his brother on the shoulder excitedly, "We can start to fix this." He smiled, flinching back a little when Dean shrugged his hand off.

"There's nothing to _'fix'_, Sammy. I'm fine." he insisted yet, even as he spoke, Sam could see the tell-tale trickle of blood beginning to leak from Dean's nose.

"Dammit…not again…" he sighed wearily. It was a sign of the times, he recognised, that Dean knew immediately what he was talking about. Surprisingly however so did Ash and Ellen. The female of the duo brought over a roll of tissue paper from behind the bar whilst Ash lead Dean over to the sofas in the corner of the room.

Sam felt guiltily glad that Dean was out of the way for the moment, if only because it meant he could talk to Ellen without Dean butting in about how there was 'nothing wrong'.

"What's happening to him?" Sam asked pleadingly his pleading brown eyes meeting Ellen's worried green ones.

"Pull up a chair, Sam." Ellen said in reply, "You're going to need to listen carefully."

* * *

"When I said, 'not you too' I wasn't referring to you." Ellen began to explain. "What's happening to your brother has been happening all over the world."

"Hence the map." Sam assumed and Ellen nodded.

"Ash has been scouring the Internet for the past week. At first it was just the odd person or two spouting some story on the forums. Ash said he assumed they were 'trolling'. But then more stories cropped up, in different countries, different languages, different ages, genders, races…Now the press are even starting to take notice." Ellen trailed off shaking her head. It was almost as if she could barely get her head around what was happening. "All with the same story, all consistent - manifestation of supernatural abilities followed by some side-effect."

"How many?" Sam asked, having to force the words out past a lump in his throat. Supernatural activity on this level could _not _be a good thing.

"So far…we've recorded 350." Ellen replied but Sam recognised what she didn't say as much as what she did say.

"_At least three hundred and fifty…" _he mused _"And Dean's one of them, what're the odds?" _

"The centre of the activity seems to be centred around the South of the US in Florida, Key West if our estimate is right. If we want to stop this thing, that's where you boys need to go."

"Yeah…" Sam agreed before sighing, he hated to do this but, since Dean was unable to, Sam decided it was only fair to present his elder brother's opinion.

"Dean…I don't think he'll want to go" the younger Winchester ventured. "You heard what he said, he loves this. He's been raving forages about how useful it'll be in the field. I'll get a vision and he'll step in and do his telekinetic-thing. 'The Winchester mojo' he calls it." Sam said with a reluctant smile and he could see Ellen smiling a little too but it didn't put him at ease. It was the kind of smile you saw at funerals where people remember fond things about the recently deceased. Happy but overshadowed by a far greater sorrow.

"That'd be great…" she agreed, "But this…thing, this process, it doesn't just stop with nosebleeds and headaches. It's not like your gift, Sam."

"What...?" Sam had a worrying feeling he knew what Ellen was going to say but he wouldn't…couldn't think it. First the heart attack then the car accident…he'd seen his brother too close to death too many times. For it to happen again, it wasn't fair.

"It starts with the odd nosebleed, headache. Then it gets worse." Ellen said solemnly "Fatigue, nausea, that's when people start checking into the hospital. But…they don't get better. Ash hacked into the records; people's bodies just seem to give up after a while."

"Oh God…" Sam clenched his fists in frustration.

"It seems inevitable whatever people do." Ellen said, "But we found a correlation. Listen Sam, the more Dean uses those powers, the worse he'll get" she said seriously, each of her words hard and determined.

"But…Dean's been playing stupid pranks ever since he discovered he had that power…" Sam said in horror. "Hell, he lifted a whole wendigo with his mind!"

"And he's been getting worse." Ellen assumed, sighing gravely when Sam nodded his head.

"He's nearly asleep now." Sam said as he looked over his shoulder to his older brother "And it's only 8pm."

"Look…" Ellen began, "It's getting dark, you're tired, Dean's _exhausted_, why don't you boys stay the night?"

Sam wasn't about to argue and he had a feeling Dean wouldn't either.

"You just make sure to let him know telekinesis is off-limits."

Sam couldn't help but smile, "I've been trying to tell him that since this whole thing started."

"Yeah well, now he's got a reason to stop fooling around." Ellen said, her tone indicating this wasn't something she was prepared to joke about. "Even when hunting, he _can't _use it." she stressed, "No matter what."

"Yeah." Sam agreed, "I'll tell him." But he made no promises. Dean tended to put killing demons above his own safety anyway, he didn't see why that trend would stop just because there were psychic powers in the mix.

"I'll tell him" he repeated, "But I don't know if he'll listen."

* * *

**AN: Boring talking I know :(. Hopefully the boys will be kicking some butt next chapter. **


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Sorry for the delay, peeps. Things are hectic and updates will be slower for a while so sory about that (if anyone is acually bothered, lol).  
Anywaaaay, un beta-ed, not mine, no spoilers, no warnings (unless you count lousy knowledge of US geography worthy of a warning). Enjoy**

Sam felt ridiculously like a little kid as Ellen pressed two brown paper bags full of sandwiches into his hands.

"If I can make sure you have _one _healthy meal that's something at least" Ellen said, obviously noting Sam's slight look of bewilderment.

"Thanks" Sam replied, and he meant it. Dean might not have a problem living off coffee and take-out but Sam usually needed at least a few fruit or vegetables in order to convince himself he wasn't turning into a total slob.

"And, Dean I mean it about using those powers" Ellen rounded on the older Winchester who was standing beside Sam.

"Yes ma'am" Dean nodded and Sam prayed that Dean wasn't just saying that to keep the woman quiet.

Last night had been the worst night since Dean had discovered his powers by far. The headaches that Ellen had mentioned had started, nothing on a par with the spitting brain-ache Sam himself experienced during a vision, but enough for Dean to take a couple of pain-killers, something the older Winchester only did when he was in a fair amount of pain. Sam hoped it was mainly due to general fatigue but he wasn't naive enough to truly believe it.

"You up for a little demon ass-whooping, Sammy?" Dean asked with a grin, clapping his younger brother on the shoulder.

"Sure" Sam replied easily trying to keep up the cheery banter despite how anxious he was feeling. "Are you?" he countered.

Dean frowned a little at the look in Sam's eyes. His brother's tone was light but his expression was serious and the mixed signals confused the elder Winchester.

"I'm always up for demon ass-whooping" he replied and Sam, Ellen and Dean himself knew there were no mixed signals there, just one hundred percent honesty and conviction.

* * *

"This could be tough, Dean" Sam said seriously as they made their way to the Impala parked in the Roadhouse car park "Are you sure you're up to it?"

"How do you know it's going to be tough?" Dean asked, smoothly avoiding his brother's question, "We don't even know what _it_ is."

"Exactly" Sam replied as he clambered into the car, shutting the door a little too firmly in his nervous state, "We don't know what we're up against, where it is….nothing."

"We know it's in Florida" Dean supplied, "That's something" he added and Sam rolled his eyes at his brother's optimism. "What?" Dean asked as he started the car, noticing the expression on his brother's face, "There're worse places to hunt evil than Florida, Sammy" he stated and Sam had to admit, he was right.

"Maybe we can drown it in orange juice" the younger Winchester joked and Dean snickered.

"I could make a few bucks picking fruit with this new power" the elder Winchester suggested playfully, rolling his eyes when Sam turned to stare at him.

"Dean" Sam began flatly; "Don't even think about it."

* * *

"Here we are, Sammy. Florida, the Sunshine State" Dean beamed as he neatly parked the Impala outside a hotel.

"Doesn't look to Sunshine-y now" Sam observed dryly as he peered out of the car window.

"We come to Florida in the middle of Summer and we land right in time for a storm." Dean grumbled as he exited the Impala, staring up at the rumbling grey clouds above. "That is so typical of our luck, Sam"

"Luck's got nothing to do with it, Sonny."

Dean and Sam both turned at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, surprised to see an elderly man making his way towards them.

"You're new in town." The man spoke as though this was a fact, not a question or even a presumption.

"Er, yeah that's right" Sam replied, feeling rude staying silent. "I'm Sam and this is my brother Dean" he continued.

"Well, Sam, Dean, if you boys came here for a vacation you might as well turn right back around" the man sighed before noting the confused expression on the faces of the two Winchesters.

"Those clouds been there 'bout a week and a half now" he explained, "And they don't show much sign o' going away. Ya'll shoulda checked the weather first" he chastised and Sam couldn't help but smile.

"We…uh…we're not here on holiday" Dean finally spoke up as the elderly man began walking away. "We're here for a project."

Sam watched as he brother began spinning their latest cover story. Dean always started with just giving away the tiniest scraps of information. That way, Dean had explained to him, they could add to later if necessary but they didn't have to spin a huge web of lies making them less likely to be caught out.

"You lookin' for a place to stay?" The man asked in reply, his tone sounding oddly hopeful to Sam.

"As long as it's cheap" Dean shot back with a cheeky grin, starting to follow the man who was still walking away.

"We'll take whatever business we can get" the man replied and Sam and Dean exchanged surprised looks.

"You own this place?" Dean asked, gesturing to the hotel they were walking towards. The place was small, two stories and was only rated a three star but it would still be quite a workload to look after.

"No, no…" the old man shook his head sadly, "My name's Benjamin, I'm just the janitor." He paused briefly, looking around briefly and dropping his voice a little as though he didn't want anyone to hear.

"But I know the folks that own it, know 'em well. They're good folks; honest, hard working, got a little baby girl. Well, I call her a baby, she's up to my knee now but I remember when she was just-"

"That's uh, that's real nice, Benjamin" Dean cut the man off, sounding bored and Sam shot the elder Winchester an irritated look, annoyed at his brother's rudeness in front of who was obviously a lonely old man.

"Well, with these clouds looming in most o' the tourists just packed up and left. Business is slow now and with little Emma's medical bills to pay…" Benjamin sighed. It was a weary, lonely sigh, the sigh of a man losing faith in the world.

"Medical bills?" Sam asked, trying to sound more sensitive than curious as they entered the hotel lobby.

"I dunno what happened" Benjamin shrugged, "One day she just comes home from school, starts yapping on about seeing the future. I told them folks o' hers she was watching too much darn TV but it was more than just silly ideas. She was always a bright, friendly little thing but after that day she got moody, withdrawn, started just staying in her room 'lookin' at the future', she'd say."

Dean and Sam exchanged nervous glances which didn't go unnoticed by the sharp-eyed janitor.

"I know, I know, crazy. But you know, kids they get crazy ideas sometimes. Then she gets sick, nosebleeds, head aches, and she doesn't even want to eat any more…"

"That's awful" Sam sighed. His words had a deeper meaning than Benjamin recognised since Sam knew what was happening to the girl.

"Don't I know it" Benjamin said bitterly, "I ain't a man of faith of, Son, ain't like I have a reason to be either but times like this all you can do is pray."

That sigh again, Sam noted, beaten and exhausted.

"Someone will help" Sam assured the man, silently making it a promise in his head. "Whatever's happening, there'll be a reason for it, and someone'll fix it."

"Yeah?" The janitor questioned sceptically.

"Yeah." Sam replied confidently. _"And that someone" _he added silently in his head _"Is me" _

* * *

**AN: Meh, waffly and boring, I know but I wanted to get something up. This chapter should be posted on my livejournal ( maz (underscore) kazama (dot) livejournal (dot) com) by tomorrow night.**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Okay, it's been stupidly long since I updated this. Sorry guys!**

* * *

The sound of Sam's breathing echoed off the hotel walls and Dean took a little pleasure in the fact that, for once, he was awake to hear it. Ever since his abilities had begun manifesting he'd been almost permanently exhausted, falling asleep before 10pm on most nights.

_And the day you don't use them is the day you feel the least tired._

Dean could just imagine the smug look on Sam's face if he admitted that and he rolled his eyes, shooting a glare in the sleeping Sam's direction, just because it made him feel better, before his gaze drifted away to his rucksack at the foot of his bed and he remembered the Twinkies he'd stashed in there. He was already imaging opening the buckles with his mind when Sam mumbled something and he frowned – was the younger Winchester awake after all?

"Sam?" the elder Winchester whispered as he slid off the bed to stand closer to his brother's side, the Twinkies forgotten.

"No….no, don't…don't use them…you promised"

"_Just a dream"_ Dean thought, relieved, and was turning to climb back into bed, when Sam shot bolt upright making the older Winchester turn right back around in panic.

"DEAN!"

Sam was panicked, sweating, looking about the room blindly and Dean quickly moved into his line of sight, perching at the end of the bed.

"I'm here!" he insisted, reacting automatically to Sam's panic. "I'm here, I'm here" he heard himself repeating, grabbing Sam's hand in an attempt to catch the younger Winchester's attention.

"Dean?" Sam was squinting into the darkness, his eyes not as adjusted as Dean's who had been staring into the dark for some time now and Dean gave the light switch a little telekinetic flick, guiltily hoping Sam was still too out of it to notice.

"You okay?" he asked as Sam's eyes settled on his now illuminated form. "It was just a dream"

"No…" Sam shook his head as he ran a hand through his sweat dampened hair.

"No you're not okay or no it wasn't just a dream?"

"It wasn't just a dream and I'm not okay" Sam replied wearily and Dean looked at him cautiously, frowning when Sam's expression morphed from one of worry to one of confusion.

"Dean…."

"What is it, Sammy?"

"Can you, uh, stop holding my hand now?"

* * *

Sam couldn't help but snicker as Dean pulled his hand away as if burned.

"I can't help it if you're just gonna go around grabbing my hand…" the elder Winchester muttered under his breath and Sam sighed.

"Anyway" Dean began as Sam sat upright, "A vision? What did you see?"

Sam hesitated at this. What _had_he just seen? Oh God, what was the point pretending? He'd seen the demon (or what he assumed to be the demon responsible) causing all this - seen where it was and what it was doing. So far so great, it was what he had seen next that caused him to question whether he ought to tell Dean or not.

"I uh…" the younger Winchester began speaking slowly, hoping to stall for time while he figured out what to say to his brother.

"Sammy?"

"I-I don't feel so good…" he murmured, hoping that Dean wouldn't push the issue. What he didn't know was how exhausted he really did look which meant that Dean took very little persuading.

"Alright, lie down" Dean ordered, "We'll talk in the morning."

Sam mumbled his acceptance as he heard Dean move back to his own bed and was too tired to grumble when Dean chose to flick the light off with his mind rather than with his fingers. After all, he had bigger things to worry about. The image of Dean slumping to the ground, exhausted, still haunted Sam's mind, and his own screams, as he watch the demon slowly beat the life out of Dean as Sam himself stood trapped and helpless, echoed in his thoughts.

"_No"_ he decided firmly. _"If I tell him where the demon is, we'll go and fight it and that'll happen. Dean will die and chances are I might too." _

So what options did that leave him with? None at all really - he couldn't not fight, not when he thought of Dean and of the little girl from the hotel. He couldn't go with Dean and see his vision become a reality so, there was only one choice. He would have to go and fight alone.

* * *

After almost an hour of convincing Dean he didn't remember his vision, and nearly another hour of putting up with Dean's cursing and bitching that he 'should have got it of him at the time' and that this was the last time he was 'letting you off the hook over some headache, Sam' he had _finally_managed send the elder Winchester out for breakfast and coffee. Now, when all Sam wanted was a quiet few quiet minutes to gather his thoughts, Dean was insisting on trying to jog Sam's memory.

"_Come on_, Sammy" Dean wheedled, "_Think_!"

"I'm **trying**to think, Dean, but it's hard with you pestering me every ten seconds."

_Well, that wasn't a complete a lie._

"Can't you try a bit hard-"

A quiet knocking startled Dean into silence and the brothers exchanged confused glances before moving towards the door. As Dean pulled it open, both he and Sam were surprised to see, not Benjamin the janitor, but a small girl standing in the entrance way.

"Er…..hello?" Sam ventured when Dean simply stood there frowning. "Are you lost?"

"I see what you see" the girl replied, her near-emotionless tone made Sam shiver. That wasn't the only thing that freaked him; the girl was awfully pale and her eyes seemed almost lifeless.

"What?" Dean spoke when Sam remained silent and the girl turned her head sharply to look at Dean.

"You hold back your gift, Brother" she spoke with a hint of accusation. "Mother has blessed you, there's nothing to fear."

"My mother's dead" Dean spoke, his eyes flashing with emotion, "And Sammy's the only one who can call me his brother."

"As you wish, Dean Winchester" the girl replied with a careless shrug despite the impact her words had on the older Winchester.

_How the Hell did she know his name?_

"I saw your vision" she continued as she turned back to Sam. "You intend to go to Mother alone."

Sam felt Dean stir at this, but he ignored him - there would be time for explanations later.

"She will kill you if you go alone."

"She'll kill us both if we go together!" Sam replied angrily and the girl shook her head.

"That will not be the case. Mother loves us, you will learn this when you go to her. You know where she is, you will take Dean there." The girl finished.

She spoke, Sam noted, as though what she was saying was fact. Well, this girl seemed to be a precognitive too, maybe it was fact.

"Wh-"

Sam stopped speaking as the girl turned her head to the left and, a few seconds later, Benjamin the caretaker rounded the corner.

"Emma?" His tone was both and relieved, "They let you out of hospital?"

"No" the girl replied sweetly.

"What are you doing here?" The old man asked and Emma pointed to Sam and Dean.

"I came to see the Winchesters" she replied simply before fainting, without ceremony into the arms of Sam Winchester who bent down to catch her.

"Good God…" Benjamin mused, summing up exactly how both Sam and Dean were feeling, "What the heck just happened?"

* * *

**AN: If anyone actually cares any more I'll try and update quicker next time, I promise!**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Thank you very much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, I know I updated slowly but I'm really trying with the characterisation on this one so I keep rechecking the dialogue. Btw, I'm not sure what on Earth is trying to do to my documents but I'm sorry if the formatting is all wonky**

* * *

"I don't **believe **you, Sam!"

Sam stood off in a corner of the room as Dean paced furiously. He hadn't seen his brother this mad in a long time and the younger Winchester was torn between trying to calm Dean down or just waiting out the storm of Dean's fury.

"You _lied _to me _and _you were going to go face it alone? What the Hell?!"

Dean paused to run an agitated hand through his hair and it was only in the brief moment of silence that followed that Sam noticed the vibrations that were shaking the room and causing the contents of his bedside table to rattle against the cheap plastic.

"I can't believe-"

"Dean…." Sam spoke warily as the various items scattered across the table slowly rumbled closer to the edge. The younger Winchester could feel the very floor under his feet shaking now, as though the people below had a base guitar amp pointed at the ceiling, but the cause of these vibrations was much more worrying than some disruptive neighbours.

"Don't think apologising is going to make this any better, Sam!" Dean snapped with a scowl and Sam frowned, Dean didn't even seem aware of what he was doing.

"Dean, please calm down…" Sam tried to keep any urgency or panic out of his voice, not wanting to agitate his older brother even more.

"How can I, Sam? You lied to me and…and you were nearly going to get yourself **killed**!"

And then Dean managed to shut himself up as the motel window splintered with a sickening crack as soon as he had finished speaking. The noise startled him into silence as he stumbled away from the cracked pane and towards Sam.

"What the Hell?"

Dean's voice was dazed and confused and Sam prayed it was just shock and not exhaustion as he searched Dean's face for the tell-tale trickle of blood.

"Sam…"

Dean's voice was tense and Sam cursed as a bright crimson trickle seeped from Dean's nose, stark against the now pasty skin.

"Sit down, Dean" the younger Winchester ordered calmly, leading Dean to the edge of the bed. Dean followed without complaint which immediately set the alarm bells off in Sam's head.

"Dean?" he asked, his worry increasing as he noticed Dean's head hanging limp against his neck, "Dean?!"

"Godammit, I wrecked another shirt…"

Sam breathed out in relief as Dean raised his head to meet Sam's eyes.

"Yeah well, the shirt was probably cheaper than the window" Sam half-joked and Dean raised his eyebrows in response, glancing at the window and then back to his brother.

"Are you calling me a cheapskate?"

"I'm calling you a moron" Sam retorted, straightening up now he was fairly confident Dean wasn't about faint.

"What?" Dean's reply was laced with anger but Sam didn't miss the undertones of hurt there. Unfortunately for Dean, Sam was angry too, too angry to play into Dean's pity trip.

"Real macho of you Dean, breaking the window, real clever" the younger Winchester snarked, "I thought I could trust you not to use your powers, like we agreed, but I guess not"

"And I thought I could trust **you **not to lie to me and make plans behind my back but I guess that's not true either!" Dean shot back and Sam winced, that little retort had hit the mark.

"Well, I at least thought I could trust you not _intimidate _me into agreeing with you" he replied with brutal honesty, feeling too guilty to coat his reply with anger or sarcasm.

"Sam?" Dean asked, trying to figure out through the pounding in his skull what his younger brother was hinting at.

"Sam, I didn't do this on purpose" he insisted, taken aback by Sam's fierce glare of disapproval, "Sam, you gotta believe me" the elder Winchester insisted. "After I broke that ashtray in front of you, I promised I'd never use my powers like that again" Dean was being as sincere as he could be and he was alarmed to see Sam was still frowning. "Sammy?"

"I believe you" Sam finally replied, moving to sit down next to his brother, "I'm sorry for accusing you of that."

"S'alright" Dean replied with a shrug, "I'm more hurt about the cheapskate comment" he said, placing his hand over his heart in mock-hurt, although, if he was brutally honest, he pain was only half-faked – his chest felt unusually tight and it felt like an effort to draw in every breath. Coupled with the pounding in his head, general exhaustion and the fact he felt ready to throw up, he felt pretty far from 'alright'…Not that he would admit that to Sammy.

"_It'll pass in a minute" _the elder Winchester lied to himself.

"And I'm sorry for lying to you about my vision" Sam continued, too caught up in his apology to notice the frightening shade of white Dean's skin had turned.

"Sam, I-"

"You've got every right to be pissed at me and I had no right to deceive you-"

"Sam…"

"We're a team now, and we'll tackle it together" Sam continued seriously and Dean licked his lips nervously as the end of Sam's sentence trailed off into mumbled nonsense, drowned out by the ringing in his ears.

It was only when Sam felt Dean's head hit his shoulder that Sam stopped apologising and he froze

"….Dean?"

* * *

Sam could feel a headache coming on and it wasn't due to a vision. These days it was Dean's powers giving him headaches, rather than this own. On the other hand, Sam noted with sadness, Dean seemed to be suffering enough for the both of them. The younger Winchester had laid Dean on the motel bed. The coldness of Dean's skin had worried him and he'd draped Dean's blanket, and the blanket off his own bed over his sleeping brother before cranking up the heating. And now he sat with his head in his hands, wishing for the first time in a while that his Dad was there to help them.

"_Come on, Sam" _he scolded himself, _"You can figure this out"_

Sam breathed out slowly in an attempt to clear his thoughts. This was the first time Dean had actually passed out after using his abilities but Sam wasn't sure whether that was proportionate to the amount of psychic energy Dean had expended, or simply the general deterioration Ellen had mentioned. Probably a mixture of both, he reasoned after all, Dean _had _been a lot more cranky lately and Dean was never more cranky than when he was sick.

On top of that, Dean had used his powers without even meaning to, was that Dean's control slipping or his abilities getting stronger? With so many unanswered questions and noone to turn to for answers, Sam was sure of only one thing – they had to get this demon **fast**.

* * *

**AN: Yay, so we're close to the big showdown now, I know not a lot happened there but I hope you're enjoying.**

Maz


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

It was hard to describe the almost tangible sense of foreboding that haunted Sam as he and Dean walked down the almost deserted sidewalk. It was a strange sort of 'wrongness' - the same feeling that helped him differentiate between a vision and reality. Or maybe he was just going nuts.

"Dean, does this feel wrong to you?"

Dean cocked an eyebrow, "'Wrong'?"

"Yeah you know…" Sam trailed off as he searched for words before giving up and shrugging, "…wrong…"

"Not really" Dean replied, with a bemused smirk on his face that made Sam even surer he was just going crazy. "If anything it feels right. This is what we're meant to be doing, Sammy."

Well, at least he wasn't the only one sounding crazy.

"Just promise me you'll be careful" Sam pleaded.

"Sure, Sammy. I'm always careful."

Sam could tell his brother was just humouring him but he knew there wasn't a lot he could do about it so he settled for just rolling his eyes.

If what he had seen in his vision was correct then they were only minutes away from where the demon was, in fact, it should have been just on the next street and the brothers needed to focus, not argue. Sam didn't feel at all ready for a showdown and he felt in his pocket for the comforting presence of the Colt. He would get in there, shoot this demon and get out before Dean had a chance to even _think _about using his powers.

"You're _sure _this is where the demon is?" Dean asked sceptically as they rounded the corner and were greeted with…a whole heap of nothing.

Well, that wasn't exactly true, there was a monument painted in red, black and yellow declaring this 'the Southernmost Point in America' and a sign pointing in the direction of Cuba but neither of those looked particularly demonic. Sam was sure that this area would usually have been flooded with tourists and the symbolically deserted street reminded him why they were here. Like he could ever forget anyway.

"Cos I ain't seeing no demons, Sammy…" Dean was still talking and Sam sighed in frustration, annoyance and possibly even relief.

"It was here" he confirmed.

"Well," Dean sighed as he wandered down the street a little further, "It ain't now." The older Winchester sounded as disappointed as his younger brother felt.

Still, in usual Dean style, he quickly bounced back, tossing Sammy his cellphone and ginning, "How about a picture for the scrapbook?"

"Dean!" Sam couldn't believe it. How could his brother play around at a time like this? "Dean, be serious!"

"Hey, this is serious" Dean replied, schooling his features into mock-concern, "You better make sure you get my good side…"

And one minute Sam Winchester was watching his brother screwing around near a tourist attraction, and the next he was watching him fall as though the ground had opened up beneath him.

"Dean!"

* * *

Dean heard his brother scream but couldn't really do anything to respond as he was hurtling to the ground and to be honest that was kind of number one on his priority list at that moment.

And then he wasn't falling any more as he crashed into the ground and tasted dirt. He barely had time to process this before another body landed next to his.

"Sam?"

Dean quickly helped his dazed brother to his feet.

"What the Hell was that?" Sam gasped, simultaneously looking round and brushing the dirt off his clothes.

"I don't know" Dean spoke in between coughs as the dust tickled his throat, "But I have a feeling we might have found our demon."

"It is not I who is yours…"

An ethereal female voice seemed to echo about the dim cavern the boys found themselves in.

"Rather it is you who are mine…Dean Winchester"

Dean exchanged worried glances with his brother as they both tried to figure out where the weird voice was coming from and then, without warning, he was forced to look away as something seemed to grab hold of him, and he was being dragged, on his stomach, to god-knows-where.

A quick glance to his right showed the same thing was happening to his sibling and Dean cursed as he tried and failed to grip, something…anything to stop himself.

"We can walk, lady!" He called out irritatedly, receiving a mouthful of dirt for his troubles which muffled out a few more choice words he had in store for whoever was doing this to him.

After about 30 seconds of this undignified, and frankly _annoying_, mode of travel, it was as if the invisible grip had been lifted and Dean once again dragged himself to his feet.

They were still underground, that much was obvious but they were now in a huge, circular chamber. The ceiling was high and domed, with stalactites clinging to its surface. There was a path running around the diameter of the room whist the centre was simply a sheer drop. Dean didn't want to know how far.

"How could something like this exist underground without anyone knowing about it?" Sam mused out loud and before Dean could reply, the strange, otherworldly voice was back, this time laughing at them.

"After everything you know that is kept secret and hidden, you question the perception of your race?"

This time it was clear the voice was coming from below them and Sam moved a few steps forward to the edge of the path.

"Sam, be careful." Dean grabbed hold of his brother's sleeve to stop him going any further. He could still remember the feeling of that telekinetic pull on his body and, to be honest, it frightened him.

"Hey, listen up!" Of course, when Dean Winchester was frightened, he turned on the bravado to make extra sure he was hiding it. "I'm getting damned sick of you ruining my shirts, lady! First blood, now dirt – these things ain't cheap you know!"

And even as his voice still echoed off the cavern walls, a sweeping torrent of light and power erupted from the pit he stood at the edge of. Dean watched, almost transfixed, as the crimson-tinged light took on an almost human form. Within the swirling flow of energy he could make out a head, arms, legs and, if he squinted, breasts.

"My child…those material things will seem so insignificant when you join me."

There was something entrancing about that voice and Dean found himself nodding …well they _were _only shirts after all.

"What have you done to Dean?"

Sam's angry voice brought Dean out of his stupor, what the Hell was he doing going off into daydreams in the middle of a confrontation?

"And to the others. To that little girl?" Dean added his own demand.

"I gave them what they desired" the light seemed to shift again and Dean could see more features – long, flowing hair, delicate hands, a narrow waist and hips.

"My child Emma, always afraid that bad things were going to happen. I gave her the power to see what was in store so she could avoid them. To my children who needed to disappear, I let them. To my children who longed to influence others, I made it so. And to you, Dean, I gave you what _you _wanted – power."

"And then what? You kill them?" Sam yelled.

"They become a part of me with every second they use my gifts until their life force is spent" the light-woman spoke, her voice sounding dreamy and almost intoxicated, "And with only a little more energy this world will become my domain – brought down by the humans' lust for power beyond their control!"

"Join me, Dean…" she coaxed, "Join me and have your salvation."

"Sorry "Mom"" Dean smirked, signalling with a nod of his head for Sam to take out the Colt, "But I like this domain just the way it is."

And with that, Sam fired.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Okay guys, enjoy.**

**Chapter 9**

Dean had to admit it had been kind of a short showdown. Definitely a little anti-climactic, considering. On the other hand, watching a bullet from the Colt explode in a fury of power within the intangible light-bitch was immensely satisfying. On top of that, his head felt clearer than it had for days. He hadn't noticed it until it was gone but he now realised how much he'd been _longing_ to get to this demon. How, for a brief second, he'd even thought about joining her. When he considered that it was easy to see how the woman had managed to take control of little Emma back at the hotel earlier.

_You can consider that later! _He reprimanded himself, _"Just be thankful the bitch is out of your head._

The air hummed with sizzle of electricity as lightening swirled and forked round tendrils of red light and Dean could swear he could hear that damned voice screaming faintly. As a shower of sparks landed close to his feet the hunter wondered if he'd been a little premature in declaring this 'anti-climatic'.

"Sam, what do you say we get out of here?!" Even as he spoke the ground under his feet began to rumble. In fact the whole damn cave was shaking!

And with that revelation both brothers turned and ran. Dean wasn't even sure if they were running the right way but it was taking all he had to keep his legs pumping, he didn't have the energy to doubt his brother's sense of direction. He felt like he'd already run a marathon as it was, like someone had taken every spare scrap of energy he had and left him just enough to stay standing upright.

"Dean, come on!"

The elder Winchester hadn't realised he'd fallen so far behind until he heard his brother calling him from almost five feet ahead.

"I'm tryin', Sammy" he gasped, forcing his leaden legs to keep moving. "Damned bitch isn't going down without a fight!""

As if to confirm his words, a chunk of ceiling from the tunnel they were in crashed down where Dean had been standing just seconds before. The vibrations from its landing were enough to send Dean to his knees and, annoyingly, they didn't seem to want to let him stand. It felt like someone had just strapped one of Dad's old dumbbells to his legs. Actually, it felt like his _entire body _was weighted down and why was he so damned cold?

"Dean!" Sam's voice again and Dean frowned in exhausted confusion,

"When did you move?" God, it was even hard to _speak _now.

"Dean, come on, focus, we have to get out of here. We have to get you away from her."

Sam was literally dragging him now and Dean tried desperately to get his numb legs beneath him, only managing to feebly kick at the ground.

"Shit!"

Dean wanted to protest the fact that Sam had dropped him so unceremoniously but that though soon went out of his head as he realised the source of his brother's distress. They were back where they'd come in alright, at the bottom of a twenty foot drop. Above them, a portal swirled black and purple – Dean had never seen anything like it but he was willing to gamble that it had something to do with the fact he and Sam had dropped through solid ground into this place.

"We need…get up…portal" he tried to inform his younger brother who was really beginning to panic as a shower of debris fell onto his head.

"We can't reach it Dean!" Sam shouted, his hands running across the smooth cavern walls, "There's nothing to grip we can't climb!"

_Don't think I'm really up for climbing anyway, Sam, _Dean thought exhaustedly.

He understood his brother's panic though. – if they didn't get out of there, they'd be squashed by the cave in or, in Dean's case, drained by the demon. The hunter didn't like either option and there was only one other thing he could think of.

_You ain't gonna like this Sammy, _he silently addressed his older brother as he forced his sluggish mind to react and felt for the ability that was almost another sense to him_._

_But if we can't get ourselves to the portal…_

There! He felt the power spark in his brain. He could sense the vibrations in the air, could almost feel the texture of the cavern walls as he extended his telekinetic reach up and up.

…_Then I gotta get the portal to us!_

Of course that was easier said than done because, _damn,_ it hurt to grab something non-corporeal! Still, he grasped at it with his mind, ignoring the myriad of what felt like electrical shocks that fizzled through his brain at the touch. As he pulled down he felt warm blood trickling sluggishly from his nostrils but he ignored it. White rings burst and faded in his vision, even when he closed his eyes to try and stop them appearing.

_Godamn it this was hard…_

He felt the portal slide another foot, and then another – this was like trying to pull a parachute through the ocean, the resistance was incredible.

A trickle of blood escaped from the corner of his mouth and, through the rushing in his ears, the hunter could hear his brother yelling at him to stop.

_Sorry Sammy, but I'm a gonner anyway. _

And as their only means of escape grew inch by tantalising inch closer, Dean begged whoever was listening to give him the strength to hold out. And then, as he felt even one of his _ears_ leaking blood, it was like a switch in his brain was flipped and his brain simply shut down. His power was gone in an instant, just like it had arrived and he knew the demon was dead.

_Please let that be enough, _Dean prayed as he felt himself losing the battle for conscious, _'Cos I can't give any more…_

* * *

As he sat by his unconscious brother's hospital bedside, Sam wished he could be angry. Anger was far easier to deal with than the rest of the emotions he'd been through with these past eleven days. Eleven days of watching his brother lifeless and weak and completely unaware of trauma he was going through.

_Brain haemorrhage… _

It even _sounded _terrifying. A brain haemorrhage wasn't the type of injury you were meant to get from hunting! Bumps and bruises, and maybe even broken bones – yes, but a brain haemorrhage was just on a different scale of magnitude altogether.

The sight of Dean slumped in the tunnel floor, blood trickling from his ear in a grisly trail down the side of his face…Sam couldn't get it out of his mind as much as he tried, even eleven days on. The only thing potentially worse had been watching Dean on the operating table while surgeons fought to save his life.

And even though the doctors had said Dean would recover, Sam wouldn't believe it until he saw it.

Sam was so lost in his own memories he didn't even notice that the machine beside him was bleeping faster. He _did _however hear the tiny groan from his brother who was trying to look around through half-lidded eyes.

"Dean!" Sam reached for his brother's hand, "It's okay…you're alright." His voice was calm but Sam wanted to whoop for joy.

"S'm?"

"Yeah it's me."

"'Kay?"

Dean's words were slurred and quiet but Sam knew what his brother was asking.

"I'm fine, Dean." And then Sam's grin grew even wider as it dawned on him what he could _finally _believe. "And so are you…we're both fine!"

Even as Dean drifted back into unconsciousness, Sam's face ached with a delighted grin. Because, powers or no powers, Dean was going to be alright.

Dean's face was relaxed in sleep and Sam smiled, patting his brother lightly on the shoulder,

"We're both okay Dean," he repeated, "But next time, leave the psychic powers to me."

END

* * *

**An: Soooo, the first Supernatural fic I ever started and the first Supernatural fic I ever finished. Fitting, lol (pun intended har har har). So yeah, thank you very much to everyone for your support. I hope you enjoyed the fic!**


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